A multiplicity of runic signs was discovered on stone plates in Pliska,
but for a long time they remained undeciphered (see L Doncheva-Petkova.
Symbols on archaeological monuments of the VII-X cc., Sofia, 1980).
It is interesting to try to read these inscriptions with the help of the
alphabet of Murfatlar.

1. We begin with two quite short inscriptions, first of them
- carved on a roof tile, and second - on a clay brick:

In another place the word IK appears again, this time - written with
Greek letters on a building block (see L Doncheva -Petkova,
Op. cit., table XXII, Fig. 50).

For a number of eastern peoples (for example, for the Talysh, who once
inhabited the river valley of Bulgar-chaj in Caucasus) the term IK means
"down, from below". Also in Georgian IK means "here, not far from" and
AKE - "there above" (compare to the expression A KI from our first inscription).

It is possible that the words IK and KI in the Proto-Bulgarian inscriptions
meant "above" and "under". They appear on building blocks because they
directed the builders where a certain item had to be attached. The word
A (in the expressions A KI and A IK) in some Caucasus languages means "these"
and, therefore, A IK can be translated as THIS - HERE, DOWN, and A KI -
as THIS - ABOVE. Similar terms are observed in a number of Pamirian and
Dardic languages.

As in many other cases, these Proto-Bulgarian inscriptions are related
to two language groups - to the eastern Iranian (with Talysh among them)
and to the Caucasus languages.

Important for the final deciphering of these inscriptions are also the
Celtic languages, in which the word IK means "something that is put below"
(see Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic language, Glasgow,
1982, p. 211), and the expression A KI means "above on the house,
on the roof " (see English Cornish Dictionary, Maracion,
1977, p. 207, 221).

2. The following inscriptions from Pliska and neighbouring settlements
are not less interesting. On a stone block of a former building appears:

What did these words mean suggest again the Celtic languages. In this
language group one still meets the expression HI INNES - THESE - TO THE
FRONT. Therefore, this inscription was instructing the builders on which
side of the fortress wall to immure this large stone block (see
English Cornish Dictionary, p. 309).

3. On another stone block we find the following characters:

This inscription is peculiar in that, first, only the first section
of it had been carved, and later - the second section. With the help of
the Celtic languages the first part can be translated as: TO JOV
- GREETINGS, i.e. to Jupiter - greetings. In Celtic the name of the Jupiter
sounds as JOU, and JUS is an acclamation, a call to the Gods. The word
IIS, which was added lateral, corresponds to the Celtic JES: I swear!

This inscription is very characteristic. It shows that the Proto-Bulgarian
language was close both to the Pamirian and to the Celtic. It should not
be to a surprise, since it is known that some of the ancestors of the Celtic
peoples - for example the Cimmerians, lived close to Persia in the old
times.

4. On a pottery fragment, a part of a roof tile, is the short
word KUISI, which in Celtic
means a "form, model". In the Cimmerian language the word sounds exactly
the same as in our inscription. We do not know why this word was written
on the roof tile, but it can be assumed that it served as a model for the
production of roof tiles.

5. A stone block from Pliska has the following characters:

= KUTH (rear, hidden) - Celtic

This block was designated for the inner part of a wall, and this fact
is confirmed by the inscription.

6. At the entrance of a cave in Kraguevo there are three characters:

The first character is a ligature of the letters H and A. The second
one is a version of the letter O, known from other Proto-Bulgarian inscriptions.
The third character is the well known AN, found both in Murfatlar and in
Kubrat Bulgaria. The special position of AN shows the text is of two words
- HAO AN.

In Celtic HA means WITH, so HAO AN could be WITH GOD FORWARD, as a similar
Bulgarian expression. So it is possible HAO AN at the cave entry to represent
a type of oath. But the fact that the first word is HAO permits another
interpretation - among the Iranian peoples there is a greeting such as
HAI and HAO, as wish for well-being, luck. Then HAO AN could also mean
"I welcome you".

Another interesting detail, maybe hidden intentionally in the inscription:
if the two words are read together, the result HAOAN resembles the Celtic
word HAUN (entrance to a cave).

7. Another inscription -,
is carved on a stone block in Pliska (see L Doncheva Petkova,
Op. cit., table XX). It is an Iranian greeting in Proto-Bulgarian
environment. It is still kept in this original form - HO, by the Pamir
peoples. The beginning character is to be found very frequently as an independent
symbol on Proto-Bulgarian sacred items - a series of them is found on a
rock in Madara:

It also appears on numerous vessels in Madara (see L Doncheva-Petkova,
Op.cit., table XX). These characters point to the spiritual life
of the Proto-Bulgarians, to eastern words and special greetings and oaths
used by them

8. Still unexplored are also other Proto-Bulgarian inscriptions:

One meets the word AM and various forms of IO and OJI. All these inscriptions
were written on roof tiles from Pliska and Madara.

AM is an eastern word for CROSS, the symbol of the cross. The Talysh
word AM, which likewise means cross, is similar to the old-Egyptian word
for cross ANGH, denoted by a symbol of a cross. It is worth mentioning
that a similar symbol of a cross was the ideogram of the term for heaven
in all cuneiform scripts (Sumerian, Accadian), although the word for "heaven"
was quite different, (see G. Angelova, Morphological and
syntactic structures, S., 1984, p. 2).

The Proto-Bulgarian word AM starts with a character resembling a cross.
It is because in one of the versions of the Proto-Bulgarian alphabet the
letter A resembled cross.

For some peoples of the east the word ANGCH meant not only a cross but
also a "character, symbol" and from this came out the term ANT - "OATH".
For this reason it can assumed that the expression JOAM meant "holy symbol
of JO " (i.e. of Jupiter) and it was carved as a protection on the roof
tile.

In those times these oaths were frequently accompanied by a ritual kissing
of holy symbols. In the Celtic languages the word AM means a "kiss". It
suggests that the expression JOAM referred to an old ritual expression.
We meet here both the Celtic word JO (Jupiter) and the Celtic word for
kiss. JO AM might mean THE OATH BEFORE JO, THE KISS OF JO or A HOLY SYMBOL
OF JO.

It was one of the most difficult and most interesting Proto-Bulgarian
inscriptions to translate. The form of the Proto-Bulgarian letter A coincides
with the form of the Egyptian cross, but also with the fact that in the
Proto-Bulgarian language the holiest ritual - the oath kiss, was called
AM. Interesting is also the history of the special form of A as a cross
- it was kept in Bulgaria for a very long time, perhaps because of its
similarity with the glagolic A. Not long ago a ring with the inscription
'+ssenov's ring' (i.e. Assenov's ring) was discovered in the church of
the Assen's dynasty "Holy forty martyrs" in Veliko Turnovo. The letter
A of this inscription is of exactly the same form as that in the Pliska
inscription (see M. Shopova "Car's grave, discovered in Turnovo
", "24 hours", 21.07.1992.). To whom of the Assens the ring belonged
still remains to be clarified, it was found in the same gallery where was
the grave and the ring of Assen's I brother Kalojan. The ring belonged
neither to Assen II nor to another young man of his family but most likely
to Ivan Assen I. He choose the old letter for his initial probably because
of its resemblance with the Christian cross.

The reference to the Proto-Bulgarian alphabet shows that he did not
descend from the Cumans, as by many historians assume, but he was a Bulgarian,
a quite learned Bulgarian for his time. The name Assen itself originates
from the area the Proto-Bulgarians came from. One meets it in Elam under
the form ASSEEN, and in Persia and Parphia - as Ahsen. Assen is not derivative
of the Cuman personal name Hassan. In Elamic it meant a 'noble, dignitary',
while Hassan is the Arabian form. The Assens had a high opinion of their
name and attached it as a symbol of their self-confidence to their personal
names: Ivan-Assen, Kalojan-Assen, Mikhail-Assen, Konstantin-Assen.

9. There are more inscriptions of oaths on the rocks around Madara.
In the central sanctuary of Madara one finds for example the following
short inscription:

The characters pertain to the version of the Proto-Bulgarian writing,
common for the areas of Provadija and Targovishte. The word ANN is however
well known. It resembles the symbol AN, mentioned already, and it can be
connected both to the deity and to the old-Egyptian term ANKH.

The following inscription was carved on rock in Kalugerica:
= HOS. The interpretation is possible from both Iranian and Celtic. In
Celtic - from the word HJUS (sacred, magic), and from Iranian - words as
HUDO (God) and HASHI (sun).

Another inscription of an oath comes from Madara. The letter L in it
is shown in the same way as in Ravna and Krepcha and the deciphering is
relatively straightforward:

The first word 'E' means in Iranian and also in Celtic "the", and the
second one 'LI' - an "oath" in Celtic. 'E LI' can be translated as "this
is an oath".

A rock above Preslav has the following inscription: ,
denoting probably Jupiter - JOV or JOU. Likewise the word TIH above the
entry of a cave in Madara, means in Celtic a "cloister, a place of solitude":

= tigh (Celtic)

As we see, there are very many and different in content Proto-Bulgarian
inscriptions from the area around the old capital. Contrary to Murfatlar,
where almost all inscriptions were religious in content, the writings in
this area were used for a number of quite prosaic purposes as well - for
marking stone blocks used in fortress walls, or models for the production
of roof tiles and clay bricks. The Proto-Bulgarians not only had its own
writing, but it was also quite common for the population of the central
areas of the country. The use of two versions of the alphabet is a further
proof that they had deep roots in everyday's life.